Endoscopic imaging with augmented parallax

ABSTRACT

A method for imaging involves scanning an anatomical object within a patient and capturing reflected IR light with a plurality of cameras that are separate from the scanner. The IR images captured by the IR cameras are associated together to create an integrated image based on parallax between the IR cameras and the scanner. The integrated image is associated with a separate or optical light image of the anatomical object to generate an intra-operative 3D image that can be created in real-time. Systems for effectuating such imaging may include multiple surgical instruments supporting various cameras positioned to capture different fields of view and to increase parallax.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/707,280, filed on Dec. 9, 2019, which claims the benefit of andpriority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/790,839, filed onJan. 10, 2019, the entire disclosure of each of which is incorporated byreference herein.

BACKGROUND Description of Related Art

Current monocular optical devices (e.g. endoscope, bronchoscope,colonoscope) used for viewing surgical fields during minimally invasivesurgery (e.g. laparoscopy) and visual diagnostic procedures (e.g.colonoscopy, bronchoscopy) provide limited reference information on theabsolute position of surgical tools and anatomical features because theimage has no depth of field. Binocular (also known as stereoscopic)optical devices provide limited depth of field affording the surgeonvisual information on the distance between items within the opticaldevice's field of view. The accuracy of distance information is limitedbased on the amount of parallax provided by the optical paths,determined by the distance between the optical paths, and the amount ofoverlap between the two optical paths.

SUMMARY

This disclosure is directed to a method of imaging within a body of apatient. The method includes capturing IR light reflected off of ananatomical object with at least two IR cameras, with the at least two IRcameras positioned in spaced relation relative to a scanner projectingthe IR light. The method further includes generating a plurality of IRlight images, where each IR light image of the plurality of IR lightimages is generated based on IR light captured by a respective IR cameraof the at least two IR cameras. Additionally, the method includesdetermining a parallax of each IR camera with respect to the scanner,associating each IR light image of the plurality of IR light images witheach other based on the determined parallax to create an integrated IRlight image, associating the integrated IR light image with an opticallight image captured by an optical light camera, generating anintra-operative 3D image based on the association of the integrated IRlight image with the optical light image, and displaying the generatedintra-operative 3D image on a display.

Associating each IR light image of the plurality of IR light images witheach other may include generating a 3D point cloud. In an embodiment,the at least two IR cameras include three IR cameras arrayed in the bodyof the patient, and capturing IR light reflected off the anatomicalobject includes capturing IR light with the three IR cameras. Each IRcamera may have a different field of view. The different fields of viewmay overlap.

In an embodiment, a first IR camera of the at least two IR cameras iscoupled to a first surgical instrument and a second IR camera of the atleast two IR cameras is coupled to a second surgical instrument, andcapturing IR light reflected off of the anatomical object includescapturing IR light reflected off of the anatomical object within a firstfield of view and a second field of view. The first field of view isassociated with the first IR camera and the second field of view isassociated with the second IR camera. The method may further includeoverlapping the first and second fields of view.

In an embodiment, the method further includes projecting IR light with asecond scanner onto the anatomical object within the patient at adifferent frequency, interleaved timing, or combinations thereof, thenthat of the IR light projected by the scanner.

Additionally, or alternatively, generating the intra-operative 3D imageis effectuated in real-time and updated as new optical light images arecaptured by the optical light camera.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, a system for imagingwithin a body of a patient includes: an optical camera; a surgicaldevice having a scanner configured to transmit infrared (IR) lightwithin the body of the patient; a first surgical instrument having afirst IR camera; a second surgical instrument having a second IR camera;and a computing device. The first and second surgical instruments areseparate from the surgical device such that the first and second IRcameras are disposed in spaced relationship with each other and thescanner. The computing device is in communication with the scanner andthe first and second IR cameras. The computing device has a processorand a memory storing instructions thereon which, when executed on theprocessor, cause the system to: determine parallax between the first andsecond IR cameras with respect to each other and the scanner; generatean integrated IR image based on the determined parallax, a first IRimage captured by the first IR camera, and a second IR image captured bythe second IR camera; associate the integrated IR image with an opticalimage captured by the optical camera; and generate an intra-operative 3Dimage based on the association of the integrated IR image with theoptical image.

In some embodiments, the surgical device may be an endoscope. Theendoscope may include an optical light transmitter configured to projectoptical light toward the one or more anatomical objects. The memory mayfurther store instructions thereon which, when executed by theprocessor, cause the system to display generated the intra-operative 3Dimage.

In embodiments, the system may include a third surgical instrumenthaving a third IR camera. The first, second and third surgicalinstruments may be positioned such that each IR camera maintains adifferent field of view within the body of the patient.

In certain embodiments, the scanner is a first scanner and the systemmay further include a second scanner that is configured to transmit IRlight at a different frequency than that of the first scanner.Additionally, or alternatively, the memory may further storeinstructions thereon which, when executed by the processor, cause thesystem to transmit IR light from the first scanner at a first frequencywhen the second scanner transmits IR light at a second frequency that isdifferent from the first frequency and/or transmit IR light from thefirst scanner and the second scanner at interleaved timing with respectto the first scanner.

According to yet another aspect of the disclosure, a non-transitorycomputer readable storage medium stores a program which, when executedby a computer, causes the computer to: generate IR light images of IRlight projected by a scanner and reflected off of an anatomical object,where each of the IR light images is captured by a plurality of IRcameras; determine parallax between the plurality of IR cameras and thescanner; associate the IR light images to create an integrated IR lightimage based upon the determined parallax; and associate the integratedIR light image with an optical light image of the anatomical object togenerate a real-time, intra-operative 3D image of the anatomical object.The program, when executed by the computer, may cause the computer togenerate the real-time, intra-operative 3D image and/or display thegenerated real-time intra-operative 3D image.

In embodiments, the program, when executed by the computer, causes thecomputer to generate a 3D point cloud based on the integrated IR lightimage. In embodiments, the point cloud can be rendered into a volumetricshape such as a mesh or other 3D construct. In some embodiments,segmented CT objects can be overlaid into the surgical field of view onanatomical objects. Additionally, or alternatively, the program, whenexecuted by the computer, causes the computer to warp the optical lightimage onto the integrated IR image.

Other aspects, features, and advantages will be apparent from thedescription, the drawings, and the claims that follow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various aspects and features of the disclosure are described hereinbelowwith references to the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1A is a schematic view of one embodiment of a system in accordancewith the disclosure;

FIG. 1B is a schematic view of another embodiment of a system inaccordance with the disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a front, perspective view, of a distal portion of an endoscopeof the system of FIG. 1A;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are progressive views illustrating the system of FIG. 1Bimaging an anatomical object within a body of a patient usinginterleaved timing;

FIG. 3C is a side view illustrating the system of FIG. 1B imaging ananatomical object within a body of a patient using variable frequencyscanning;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating parallax between a scanner andIR cameras of the systems of FIGS. 1A and 1B;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a computing device of the systems of FIGS.1A and 1B;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a method for imaging an anatomical objectwithin a body of patient;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of yet another embodiment of a system inaccordance with the disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of still another embodiment of a system inaccordance with the disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view illustrating parallax between optical camerasof the system of FIG. 8 ;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart of a method for imaging an anatomical objectwithin a body of patient; and

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustration of a robotic surgical systemconfigured for use with the systems and methods of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the disclosed systems, devices and methods are described indetail with reference to the drawings, in which like reference numeralsdesignate identical or corresponding elements in each of the severalviews. As commonly known, the term “clinician” refers to a doctor, anurse, or any other care provider and may include support personnel.Additionally, the term “proximal” refers to the portion of structurethat is closer to the clinician and the term “distal” refers to theportion of structure that is farther from the clinician. In addition,the term “cephalad” is used to indicate a direction toward a patient'shead, whereas the term “caudad” indicates a direction toward thepatient's feet. Further still, the term “medial” indicates a directiontoward the middle of the body of the patient and the term “lateral”indicates a direction toward a side of the body of the patient (e.g.,away from the middle of the body of the patient). The term “posterior”indicates a direction toward the patient's back, and the term “anterior”indicates a direction toward the patient's front. The phrases “in anembodiment,” “in embodiments,” or “in other embodiments” may each referto one or more of the same or different embodiments in accordance withthe disclosure. In addition, the terms “surgical devices,” “surgicaltools,” “surgical instruments,” and “surgical instrumentation” may beused interchangeably throughout the disclosure. Further, while referencemay be made to elements in the singular, such distinction is intendedonly to simplify such description and is not intended to limit thesubject matter of the disclosure. The term “target” used herein refersto tissue (either soft or hard) or areas/regions in the body of apatient that is designated as of interest for diagnosis or fortherapeutic deliveries. Similarly, the term “anatomical feature” or itsvariants, refers to organs, tissue, vessels, or other discrete portionsof the body of a patient. In addition, directional terms such as front,rear, upper, lower, top, bottom, and the like are used simply forconvenience of description and are not intended to limit thisdisclosure.

In the following description, well-known functions or constructions arenot described in detail to avoid obscuring the disclosure in unnecessarydetail.

This disclosure is directed to systems and methods for creating anddisplaying a 3D endoscopic image from multiple cameras using opticand/or scanned images.

One method to create a 3D map of a surface is to use a scanner, whichdraws a pattern across the surface while capturing the distortion of theimage. Distortion in the captured image is used to extract depthinformation to create a 3D map. This method uses a fixed projector thatcreates the scan pattern and a single dedicated camera to perform theimage capture. The resultant information forms a point cloud of datapoints positioned in 3D space (e.g. x, y, z coordinates). Thisconfiguration of scanner and imager defines how the system can beconstructed. The accuracy of the positional information derived fromthis system is dependent on the parallax, namely, the distance and anglebetween the scanner field of view (FOV) and that of the camera(s), wherelarger distances and angles produce better results.

For a medical endoscope, the amount of parallax that can be achieved islimited by the physical properties of the endoscope, which must belinear in design to allow ease of insertion into trocars or bodycavities. One implementation places a camera at the distal end of thescope and the scanner some distance back from the distal tip andprojecting out the side of the endoscope body. By designing the FOVoptics of the scanner and camera, overlap can be managed. This creates agradient of parallax where there is little towards the distal tip butsignificant amounts away from the distal tip.

In order to address the issues described above, according to aspects ofthis disclosure, the camera is spatially removed, or otherwise separate,from the endoscope body. Instead of being associated with the endoscope,the imager is appended to one or more instruments or other objects thatwould have a view of a scan target. More particularly, the describedsystems and methods to image objects or targets in an in vivo sceneutilize one or more scanners that project onto a target in vivo, whilecameras are arrayed in vivo in different positions relative to oneanother and the scanner, thereby capturing different aspects (e.g.,different perspectives) of the same scene. The data acquired isprocessed by the disclosed system to generate an intra-operative 3Dimage. An exemplary implementation would be to attach a camera to eachlaparoscopic instrument and trocar to provide multiple imagerssimultaneously observing the scan target where each camera providesscene information.

This approach has multiple advantages over the traditionalself-contained endoscopic design, which includes both the scanner andcamera on the same device, and therefore has limited parallax. Placing acamera on each surgical instrument improves the ability to get wideparallax between the camera and scanner due to the natural separationbetween the instrument(s) and the endoscope. It should, of course, beunderstood that an imaging camera may still be provided on the endoscopeat the distal tip adjacent to the scanner to support traditionalmonocular vision when no camera-supported instrument is in use.

Providing more than one camera-equipped instrument with a FOVoverlapping the scanner's FOV allows multiple views from multiple anglesto be collected simultaneously. Viewing the IR light output by thescanner from multiple angles via overlapping instrument camera FOVsincreases the accuracy of the generated 3D point cloud and decreases thenumber of blind spots where a specific camera is blocked by anintervening structure from a portion of the scanner's FOV.

This can be extended to replacing some cameras with scanners or placinga scanner/camera pair on each instrument. This allows scanning andimaging from multiple directions simultaneously, speeding the ability tofully capture a scene in 3D with a decrease in the number of areas leftunscanned due to intervening structures or temporary changes in surgicalenvironment (e.g., smoke from ablation) interfering with a sole scanneror camera FOV. Because the level of detail increases as the scannerapproaches a structure, a default zoom mode becomes available in thespecific area covered by the instrument's FOV. In order to avoidinterference between scanners, each could use a different frequency oflight or interleaved timing.

FIG. 1A shows one embodiment of an endoscopic system, generally referredto as system 10, which is configured to generate a 3D spatial map of asurgical site and/or one or more anatomical objects. Endoscopic system10 includes a computing device 12 that is in electrical communicationwith any number or type of surgical instrumentation such as first,second, third, and fourth surgical instruments 14, 16, 18, and/or 20,etc., and an endoscope 22, which may be a 3D endoscope. The surgicalinstruments 14, 16, 18, and 20 can include any suitable surgicalinstrument such as an electrosurgical forceps or pencil coupled to agenerator (not shown), a surgical stapler, grasper, stitching device,catheter, endoscope, access portal/trocar, or the like. Each of surgicalinstruments 14, 16, 18 includes an imager in the form of an IR cameraconfigured to capture infrared light. For instance, surgical instrument14, which may be in the form of forceps, includes IR camera 14 i.Similarly, surgical instrument 16, which may be in the form of a trocarthrough which forceps passes, includes IR camera 16 i. Likewise,surgical instrument 18, which may be in the form of an access portalthrough which a grasper passes, includes IR camera 18 i. Any of thedisclosed surgical instruments may alternatively or additionally includean optical camera such as optical camera 18 c coupled to surgicalinstrument 18. Endoscope 22 includes an optical camera 22 c, an IR lightscanner 22 s, and a light source 221 (see FIG. 2 ).

FIG. 1B shows another embodiment of an endoscopic system, generallyreferred to as system 10′, which includes computing device 12 andsurgical instruments 14′, 16′, 18′, 20′, and 22′, each of which may bean endoscope. One or more of surgical instruments 14′, 16′, 18′, 20′,22′ can each include scanners (e.g., scanners 14 s, 16 s, 18 s, 20 s, 22s), optical cameras (e.g., 14 c, 16 c, 18 c, 20 c, 22 c), light sourcesor optical light transmitters (e.g., 141, 161, 221), or combinationsthereof, and which may be arranged in any suitable configuration on oneor more of the surgical instruments.

FIG. 5 illustrates a simplified block diagram of computing device 12.Computing device 12 may include a memory 12 a, a processor 12 b, adisplay 12 c, a network interface 12 d, an input device 12 e, and/or anoutput module 12 f. Memory 12 a may store one or more applications 12 hand/or image data 12 g. Application 12 h (which may be a set ofexecutable instructions) may, when executed by processor 12 b, causedisplay 12 c to present a graphical user interface (GUI) 12 i based onGUI instructions and/or perform cause processor 12 b to perform anyother operation associated with the instructions stored thereon.Application 12 h may also provide the interface between one or morecomponents of the system (e.g., one or more of the surgical instruments)and the computing device 12, through, for instance, Bluetooth and/orWi-Fi. GUI 12 i may be displayed on display 12 c during the performanceof any of the disclosed methods. Display 12 c may include proceduraldata that may be displayed via GUI 12 i such as the state of the patient“P” during the surgical procedure (e.g., heart rate, blood pressure,etc.) and/or the state of one or more the surgical instrumentation(e.g., operative, engaged, in error, or current operating parameters ormodes), etc. Display 12 c may include AR/VR headsets.

Memory 12 a may include any non-transitory computer-readable storagemedia for storing data and/or software (instructions) executable byprocessor 12 b and which controls the operation of computing device 12and/or various components of the system, when in communication with thecomponents (e.g., with the optical cameras, light sources, scanners, IRcameras, etc.). In embodiments, memory 12 a may include one or moresolid-state storage devices such as flash memory chips. Alternatively,or in addition to the one or more solid-state storage devices, memory 12a may include one or more mass storage devices connected to processor 12b through a mass storage controller (not shown) and a communications bus(not shown). Although the description of computer-readable mediacontained herein refers to a solid-state storage, it should beappreciated by those skilled in the art that computer-readable storagemedia can be any available media that can be accessed by processor 12 b.That is, computer readable storage media includes non-transitory,volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implementedin any method or technology for storage of information such ascomputer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules orother data. For example, computer-readable storage media includes RAM,ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other solid state memory technology,CD-ROM, DVD, Blu-Ray or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,or any other medium which can be used to store the desired informationand which can be accessed by computing device 12.

Network interface 12 d may be configured to connect to a network such asa local area network (LAN) including a wired network and/or a wirelessnetwork, a wide area network (WAN), a wireless mobile network, aBluetooth network, and/or the Internet. Input device 12 e may be anydevice through which a user may interact with computing device 12, suchas, for example, a mouse, keyboard, foot pedal, touch screen, and/orvoice interface. Output module 12 f may include any connectivity port orbus, such as, for example, parallel ports, serial ports, universalserial busses (USB), or any other similar connectivity port.

Any of the disclosed scanners, such as scanner 22 s, includes astructured light (or laser) scanner. The structured light scanner mayemploy infrared light so as to avoid interference from visible lightsources, although it is contemplated that the structured light scannermay emit light in the visible spectrum, or any other wavelength orfrequency band, depending upon the tissue being scanned during theprocedure. In embodiments, light may be provided in a range of visibleor IR spectrum. For instance, in the visible spectrum a frequency bandmay be the entire visible spectrum (e.g., white light) or a specificcolor frequency (e.g., green). The structured light source isselectively positionable in one or more positions, which may bepredetermined, relative to one or more cameras (e.g., IR cameras 14 i,16 i, 18 i, and/or optical cameras 16 c, 18 c) of the disclosed systems(e.g., systems 10, 10′). The structured light source enables thecalculation of the exact location of the intersection between the lightray from the structured light source and the one or more cameras of thesystem. This information can be scanned as single points, lines, orarrays to create topologic maps of surfaces. In embodiments, thestructured light source is that of a light emitting diodes (LED) or LEDinfrared laser that is dispersed into a scan pattern (e.g., line, mesh,dots, etc.), by rotating mirror, beam splitter, diffraction grating,and/or panning. In one embodiment, the structured light source may be anLED laser having collimated light. The laser scanner will enablevisualization systems to achieve accurate surface maps of an anatomicalobject such as the lung needed in order to match preoperative computedimages to the operative image generated by one or more cameras of thedisclosed systems. In embodiments, a clinician may enter in commands orcontrol a structured light pattern projected from any of the disclosedscanners using any suitable user input device (e.g., touchscreen, mouse,keyboard, or the like).

The IR light may also be projected in a predetermined pattern (e.g., agrid or shaped pattern) and/or may be projected toward a target such astissue surface, which may include the target, surrounding tissue, orother tissue within the body of the patient “P” and surgical objects thelike. The IR light may be configured to strike the target and/orsurrounding tissue. One or more of the beams may be projected at varyingdistances from one another, to increase or decrease the precision ofeach IR image. For example, in embodiments, the IR light may form one ormore patterns such as preselected geometric images (e.g., stripes,random or structured placements of dots). Based on the desired level ofaccuracy, the patterns may be varied in complexity, having greateramounts of angles, positioned closer to one another, etc. Patterns mayalso be selected to optimize later analysis of the IR light oncecaptured.

Any of the disclosed optical cameras may be visual-light opticalcameras, such as a charge-coupled device (CCD), complementarymetal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS), N-type metal-oxide-semiconductor(NMOS), or other suitable camera known in the art. In embodiments, anoptical camera may be a CCD camera having a resolution of 1080p. In someembodiments, any of the disclosed systems may include a digital filter(not shown) or a filter having narrow band optical grating (not shown)that inhibits extraneous light (e.g., visible) from distracting theclinician during a surgical procedure. In some embodiments, visiblelight is filtered from the image captured by one or more of thedisclosed optical cameras and transmitted to the clinician such that anycaptured image is clear and free from extraneous light patterns. Theoptical light transmitters may be LEDs that emit white light, althoughany suitable light emitting device may be utilized. In some embodiments,the optical light transmitters may include RGB LEDs to provide theability to generate an infinite range of different visible lightspectrum. In some aspects of the disclosure, the optical lighttransmitters are configured to fade between and/or discretely switchbetween various subsets of the visible spectrum. In certain embodiments,the optical light transmitters may provide RGB, IR, UV, or combinationsthereof (e.g., RGB and IR combination LEDs, RGB and UV combination LEDs,and/or IR and UV combination LEDs).

Any of the disclosed IR cameras may be CCD cameras capable of detectingIR light (for example, as reflected), although it is contemplated thatthe IR cameras may have sufficiently wide optical capture spectrum todetect visible light, such as visible green light or the like, dependingupon the tissue being scanned. Specifically, visible green lightcontrasts with tissue having a red or pinkish hue enabling IR cameras tomore easily identify the topography of the tissue. Likewise, visibleblue light that is absorbed by hemoglobin may enable the system todetect vascular structures along with a vascular topology to act asadditional reference points to be matched when aligning captured images.

It is contemplated that any of the disclosed cameras may be anythermographic camera known in the art, such as such as ferroelectric,silicon microbolometer, or uncooled focal plane array (UFPA), or may beany other suitable visible light camera such as a charge-coupled device(CCD), complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS), N-typemetal-oxide-semiconductor (NMOS), or other suitable camera where thelight emitted from any of the disclosed scanners is in the visible ordetectable spectrum.

In embodiments, any of the disclosed cameras, scanners, or transmittersmay include one or more transparent protective covers (not shown)capable of inhibiting fluids or other contaminants from coming intocontact with the disclosed cameras, scanners, or transmitters. In someembodiments, any of the disclosed cameras, scanners, or transmitters mayinclude one or more coatings or layers with hydrophobic properties suchas silicones or HDMSO Plasma depositions. In certain embodiments, thecovers may include raised geometry that sheds, or washes body fluidsejected onto the cover.

In operation, a patient “P” (FIG. 3A) may be imaged using any suitablestandard imaging device (not shown), such as MRI, ultrasound, CT scan,Positron Emission Tomography (PET), or the like, and those images may bestored within a memory 12 a (see FIG. 5 ) of the computing device 12. Ina thoracic procedure, for instance, after the patient “P” is imaged, theclinician penetrates tissue “T” of the body or chest of the patient “P”using one or more surgical instruments 16 (see FIGS. 1A, 1B), such astrocars or other suitable device access devices so that other surgicalinstruments such as endoscopes, graspers, forceps, etc. can bepositioned in vivo.

For instance, a distal portion of an endoscope can be advanced throughone trocar and a grasper can be advanced through another trocar so thatthe graspers and the forceps can be positioned in or adjacent to asurgical site such as the thoracic cavity of the patient “P.”

To enable the clinician to observe images on a display 12 c (FIG. 5 ) ofcomputing device 12, for instance in real-time, surgical instruments 14,16, 18, 20, including endoscope 22, can be arrayed around an anatomicalobject such as a lung “L” so that the surgical instruments, namelycameras and/or scanners thereof, have different fields of view of thelung “L.” For example, IR camera 14 i of surgical instrument 14 can havea first field of view 14 f (from a first perspective), IR camera 16 i ofsurgical instrument 16 can have a second field of view 16 f (from asecond perspective), and IR camera 18 i of surgical instrument 18 canhave a third field of view 18 f (from a third perspective). One or moreof those fields of view may be wholly or partially inhibited by one ormore surgical and/or anatomical objects such as objects “O1,” “O2,” and“O3.” While one or more of the surgical instruments (e.g., IR camera 16i) may be selectively fixed in position for maintaining a constant fieldof view, such as to a rib “R” as illustrated by connector 16 x, one ormore other surgical instruments (e.g., IR cameras 14 i, 18 i, and/oroptical cameras 18 c, 22 c) may be movably positioned in vivo to capturedifferent and/or changing fields of view. Such movement, which may be inany direction such as in one or more of anterior, posterior, lateral,medial, caudal, cephalic, or the like directions, is illustrated byarrows “A” and “B” shown in FIG. 4 and may include panning and/orzooming.

FIG. 6 shows a flowchart that outlines an exemplary method of imaging asurgical site and/or objects therein, generating an intra-operative 3Dimage and/or 3D model, and displaying at least one of theintra-operative 3D image and/or 3D model. While the method includesvarious steps described in a particular sequence, the described stepsmay be performed in a different order, repeated, and/or omitted withoutdeparting from the scope of the disclosure. Additionally, the belowdescription of the method refers to various actions performed by thecomputing device 12, but these actions may be performed on variouscomputing devices configured to operate in a similar manner, or by anycomponent of the systems described herein. The actions performed mayalso occur in response to instructions stored in one or more memories 12a which are configured for execution on the one or more processors 12 bof the computing device 12 (FIG. 5 ).

In step 100, to image a target such as an anatomical object within abody of a patient, such as the lung “L,” infrared (IR) light (e.g.,laser) is projected (e.g., a plurality of IR light beams or a large beamof IR light covering an entire viewing window) from one or more scannersof one of the disclosed systems, onto the target (e.g., an anatomicalobject) within the patient. The beams may be projected in anyconfiguration or pattern (e.g., grid and/or other shape) and may beprojected any number of distances, which may be one or morepredetermined distances relative to the scanner and/or other beams. Asillustrated in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the IR light may be projected atinterleaved timing, where the interleave interval may be defined bycomputing device 12 and/or negotiated between instruments, and where afirst scanner 22 s projects the IR light for a first time period “TM1”and a second scanner 20 s projects the IR light for a second time period“TM2.” The time periods may be the same, may be different, may partiallyoverlap or not, and/or may be successive. Scanners 20 s, 22 s may beconfigured to project the IR light at the same and/or differentfrequencies. In some aspects of the disclosure, the IR light may beprojected by the same scanner in both time periods using the same and/ordifferent frequencies, for instance, to prevent interference withoptical light or each other. With reference to FIG. 3C, the first andsecond scanners 20 s, 22 s may project the IR light at the same timeusing the same and/or different frequencies, as indicated by the firstfrequency “Hz1” and the second frequency “Hz2” illustrated. Once the IRlight contacts the target, light is reflected off the target toward oneor more IR cameras in the patient “P.”

While the systems and methods described herein may refer to the use ofIR light to determine distance and optical light to capture opticalimages for subsequent analysis and display, the use of IR light andoptical light may be interchanged, for instance to create light patternsand/or to illuminate portions or an entirety of a surgical space. Boththe IR light and the optical light may be received by multiple sensors,to enable stereoscopic imaging of the reflected light by the respectivesensors configured to capture the light.

In step 110, two or more IR cameras capture IR light reflected off theanatomical object (not shown). The two or more IR cameras are positionedseparate from the one or more scanners, for example, on differentsurgical instruments than surgical instruments supporting the one ormore scanners. The two or more IR cameras are disposed in spacedrelation with respect to the one or more scanners and may be arrayedabout the anatomical object such that each IR camera has a differentfield of view with respect to the other IR cameras. The fields of viewmay be at least partially overlapping. In certain aspects, three or moreseparate IR cameras may be provided.

The IR light may be received as a plurality of points at varyingdistances from one another. With reference also to FIG. 5 , the one ormore IR cameras, in response to receiving the light reflected fromtarget, transmit an image that includes the reflected light as IR imagedata to the computing device 12. The IR image data may be based on thevarying amounts and locations of infrared energy detected (e.g.,radiation). The computing device 12 stores the IR image data in thememory 12 a of the computing device 12, and may store the IR image datain any suitable data structure such as a 2D array, 3D model, etc. Inembodiments, storage and analysis of the IR image data may be referredto as a 3D array of distance measurements calculated based on thereceived IR image data by the computing device 12.

In step 120, for each IR camera, an IR light image is generated, forinstance by the computing device 12, based on the captured IR light ofthe respective IR camera.

In step 130, parallax of each IR camera relative to the other IR camerasand/or scanner(s) (e.g., distance and angle) can be determined, forexample by computing device 12 and/or any number or type of positionsensors (not shown) or tracking software coupled to the respective IRcameras (or instruments thereof), based on the position of therespective IR cameras with respect to the one or more scanners and eachother (see, for example, the different parallax “P1,” “P2,” and “P3”with respect to a point “Z” on the lung “L”). For instance, thepositioning sensors may include electromagnetic sensors. In someembodiments, the various sensors may be separate and distinct componentswith associated hardware and/or software or may be part of a commercialplatform such as the Intel® RealSense™ technology system developed byIntel. Alternatively, or additionally, other external imaging modalitiessuch as MRI, Fluoroscopy, etc., RFID, or the like may also be used.

In particular applications, the positioning of the surgical devices, orcomponents thereof, can also be tracked by intraoperative instrumenttracking systems for example electromagnetic (EM) navigation systems.The locational information obtained by the intraoperative instrumenttracking system aids in simplifying the algorithms needed to producelarge-scale spatial surface maps from segmental sized scans.

In step 140, the IR light images (e.g., some and/or all) are associatedto create an integrated IR light image based upon the determinedparallax. In embodiments, the computing device 12 creates a 3D datapoint cloud from the processing (and converging) of data from each ofthe IR light images captured for creating the integrated IR light image.In embodiments, the 3D data point cloud can be provided in the form ofan intra-operative 3D model. In embodiments, the intra-operative 3Dmodel may be matched with a portion of a pre-operative 3D model and/or apre-operative image data (e.g., points contained or otherwise associatedwith the pre-operative 3D model). Matching may occur by identifyingcertain fiducial markers in both the pre-operative 3D model and theintra-operative 3D model and, based on the matching, the pre-operative3D model and the intra-operative 3D model may be aligned or otherwiseassociated with one another. The fiducial markers may be naturallyoccurring anatomic or mechanical and placed by a clinician beforeimaging by a CT or other modality. The computing device 12 generates a3D model (e.g., the intra-operative 3D model), or a rendering of the 3Dmodel for display on a 2D display (e.g., display 12 c) based on theintegrated IR light image data and may store the 3D model in the memory12 a. The 3D model may be stored in the memory 12 a in any suitable datastructure (e.g., a 2D array of distances from a common plane or a 3Darray of points).

In step 150, the one or more optical light cameras (e.g., 20 c, 22 c)capture reflected optical light to create an optical light image. Forinstance, one or more optical light transmitters (e.g., light source221) emit visible light that is reflected off the target and captured bythe optical cameras 20 c, 22 c of one or more of the various surgicalinstruments. The optical light cameras convert the detected light intovisible light data that is processed by the optical light camera(s)and/or the computing device 12 to form the optical light image. Theoptical light image data may be stored on the memory 12 a of computingdevice 12. The projection of optical light by the one or more opticallight cameras can be effectuated before, during, and/or after projectingIR light from the one or more scanners.

In step 160, the integrated IR light image is associated with theoptical light image. For instance, integrated IR light image data isassociated with the optical light image data stored in the memory 12 aof the computing device 12 such that the integrated IR light image dataand the optical light image data are combined and/or warped together. Inembodiments, optical light image data can be associated with one or moreof the IR light images and/or the integrated IR light image before,during, after, and/or instead of integrating the IR light images.

In step 170, an intra-operative 3D image (and/or 3D model) is generatedbased on the association of the integrated IR light image (or one ormore of the IR light images) and the optical light image based on thecombined or warped data of the IR and optical light image data. Forinstance, the computing device 12 maps the optical image data tocorresponding points in the 3D model. These points may be mapped byaligning the optical light image data with the integrated IR image data(or one or more of the IR light images) (e.g., adjusting the pixels toaccount for the spatial difference and/or parallax between the one ormore the optical cameras and the one or more IR cameras) and, oncealigned, associating the optical image data with the integrated IR imagedata (or one or more of the IR light images). For example, when theoptical image data is captured as a 2D array of points, the 2D array ofpoints may be advanced or otherwise projected toward the 3D model, witheach corresponding point of the 3D model (along the surface of theobjects contained therein) associated with the point in the 2D arrayfrom the optical image data. Each point may include image data such ascolor value, luminance, chrominance, brightness, etc. As subsequentlycaptured optical image data is mapped to the 3D model, theearlier-captured optical image data may be compared to the most-recentlycaptured optical image data and updated as is necessary. Once theoptical image data is mapped to the integrated IR image data (or one ormore of the IR light images), the computing device 12 may generate theintra-operative 3D model (or, where a 2D display is available, a 2Drendering of an intra-operative 3D image) to be displayed on the display12 c of the computing device 12 based on the mapping of the opticalimage data to the integrated IR image data (or one or more of the IRlight images). In embodiments, once the intra-operative 3D model and/orthe intra-operative 3D image is generated, the computing device 12causes the output module 12 f to output the 2D and/or 3D image.

In step 180, the generated image is displayed on the display 12 c of thecomputing device 12. The generated image can include any number ofimages captured and/or combined and/or otherwise stitched together toprovide a 3D spatial map of the anatomical object, portions, or anentirety of the surgical site, which may include any anatomy and/orobjects disposed therein (e.g., surgical tools). Imaging may beeffectuated one-time and/or repeated (e.g., continuously) so as create avideo stream of intra-operative 3D images. In aspects of the disclosure,axial CT image slices may be included. In particular, with locationidentified in the 3D model, one could determine which slice of the CTimage a special point on the 3D model came from so that the axial CTimage can be superimposed into the view. The image would be warped inperspective to denote both the rotation of the FOV to the normal of theCT image and also the depth as one side of the CT image will be closerto the FOV than the other. The user could scroll through the axial viewsand the view would continue to display a single CT image slice overlaidor inserted into the FOV.

FIGS. 7-10 show another embodiment of an endoscopic system, generallyreferred to as 10″, which is similar to systems 10 and 10′, but isconfigured to generate a 3D spatial map of a surgical site and/or one ormore anatomical objects without any scanners.

Traditional 3D or stereoscopic endoscopes utilize optical ports locatedadjacent to each other on the distal endoscope tip and a crude 3D imageis created from the small parallax between the ports. Placing a cameraon each instrument, according to this disclosure, provides significantlywider parallax and allows for accurate measurement of object locationwithin the overlapping FOVs.

More particularly, endoscopic system 10″ includes a variety of surgicalinstruments (e.g., instruments 14″, 16″, 18″, 20″, and 22″) havingoptical cameras that are arrayed about an anatomical object and thatcapture visible light images at different fields of view such as fieldsof view 14 f, 16 f, and 18 f that may at least partially overlap. Acomputing device 12 (including memory 12 a for storing captured orpredetermined data) coupled to the optical cameras associates (e.g., viaone or more processors 12 b thereof) the visible light images to createan integrated image for displaying on a display 12 c (FIG. 5 ). Inembodiments the scanner(s) may be configured to generate a stripe wherethe beam moves through a defined arc length as a standard that allcameras could observe, and the length can be used to calibrate the adhoc coordinate system (e.g. not using EM navigation system or similar)being created from the multiple cameras.

FIG. 10 shows a flowchart that outlines an example method of imaging asurgical site and/or objects therein, generating an intra-operative 3Dimage and/or a 3D model, and displaying at least one of theintra-operative 3D image or the 3D model. While the method includesvarious steps described in a particular sequence, the described stepsmay be performed in a different order, repeated, and/or omitted withoutdeparting from the scope of the disclosure. Additionally, the belowdescription of method refers to various actions performed by thecomputing device 12, but these actions may be performed on variouscomputing devices configured to operate in a similar manner, and/or anycomponent or combination of components of the systems described herein.The actions performed may also occur in response to instructions storedin one or more memories 12 a which are configured for execution on theone or more processors 12 b of the computing device 12 (FIG. 5 ).

In step 200, to image an anatomical object within a body of a patient,such as the lung “L,” optical light is projected from one or moreoptical light transmitters, such as light source 221 of endoscope 22″ ofsystem 10″, onto the target (e.g., an anatomical object) within thepatient.

In steps 210-230, first, second, and third cameras 14 c, 16 c, 18 c ofsystem 10″, respectively, capture light reflected off the target tocreate respective first, second, and third images.

In step 240, parallax of each camera (e.g., distance and angle) isdetermined with respect to the other cameras, for instance, by thecomputing device 12 and/or any number or type of position sensors (notshown) and/or tracking software coupled to the respective cameras and/orinstruments.

In step 250, the first, second, and third images, namely thecorresponding data thereof, are associated (e.g., processed by thecomputing device 12) to generate an intra-operative 3D image and/or 3Dmodel based on the determined parallax.

In step 260, the generated image is displayed on a display 12 c. Thegenerated image can be correlated to any pre-operative imaging. Thegenerated image can include any number of images that can be combined orotherwise stitched together and may be provided as a 3D spatial map ofthe anatomical object or at least portions of the surgical siteincluding any anatomy or objects disposed therein (e.g., surgicalinstrumentation).

According to aspects of the disclosure, generated 3D images may beassociated with pre-operative 3D models generated from pre-operativeimage data. More particularly, the application 12 h, during execution,may cause computing device 12 to store the image data associated withthe generated 3D image at a corresponding location in the 3D model. Thisassociation may enable computing device 12 to update images generatedduring, for instance, EM navigation, or display the intra-operative 3Dmodel (in embodiments, the pre-operative 3D model) generated duringplanning or review phases of surgical procedures.

In certain embodiments, the components of the disclosed surgical systemsmay be positionable by a robotic system. The robotic system can provideprecise six-axis orientation of the surgical instruments of thedisclosed systems in a similar manner to the navigation systems butbenefited by active positioning as well as locational knowledge of thesurgical instruments within the patient. As can be appreciated, therobotic system may be utilized to autonomously move the surgicalinstruments to complete imaging of larger areas or whole organs.

More specifically, the systems, and/or components thereof, describedherein may be configured to work with robotic surgical systems and whatis commonly referred to as “Telesurgery.” Such systems employ variousrobotic elements to assist the surgeon and allow remote operation (orpartial remote operation) of surgical instrumentation. Various roboticarms, gears, cams, pulleys, electric and mechanical motors, etc. may beemployed for this purpose and may be designed with a robotic surgicalsystem to assist the surgeon during the course of an operation ortreatment. Such robotic systems may include remotely steerable systems,automatically flexible surgical systems, remotely flexible surgicalsystems, remotely articulating surgical systems, wireless surgicalsystems, modular or selectively configurable remotely operated surgicalsystems, etc.

The robotic surgical systems may be employed with one or more consolesthat are next to the operating theater or located in a remote location.In this instance, one team of surgeons or nurses may prep the patientfor surgery and configure the robotic surgical system with one or moreof the surgical instruments disclosed herein while another surgeon (orgroup of surgeons) remotely controls the surgical instruments via therobotic surgical system. As can be appreciated, a highly skilled surgeonmay perform multiple operations in multiple locations without leavinghis/her remote console which can be both economically advantageous and abenefit to the patient or a series of patients.

The robotic arms of the surgical system are typically coupled to a pairof master handles by a controller. The handles can be moved by thesurgeon to produce a corresponding movement of the working ends of anytype of surgical instrument (e.g., end effectors, graspers, knifes,scissors, endoscopes, etc.) which may complement the use of one or moreof the embodiments described herein. The movement of the master handlesmay be scaled so that the working ends have a corresponding movementthat is different, smaller or larger, than the movement performed by theoperating hands of the surgeon. The scale factor or gearing ratio may beadjustable so that the operator can control the resolution of theworking ends of the surgical instrument(s).

It is contemplated that the surgical instruments described herein may bepositioned by the robotic system and the precise position of theendoscope transmitted to the computer to construct the 3D image of thescanned organ or operative field. The robotic system has the ability toautonomously scan the surgical field and construct a complete 3D modelof the field to aid the surgeon in directing the robotic arms or toprovide necessary 3D information for the robotic system to furtherconduct surgical steps autonomously. In embodiments, where the surgicalinstruments include a camera and/or a structured light source that areindependent of one another, the robotic system may direct the camera anda structured light source separately. The robotic system provides therelative coordinates between respective surgical instruments needed totriangulate points in the structured light and/or camera views toconstruct a 3D surface of the operative field.

The master handles may include various sensors to provide feedback tothe surgeon relating to various tissue parameters or conditions, e.g.,tissue resistance due to manipulation, cutting or otherwise treating,pressure by the instrument onto the tissue, tissue temperature, tissueimpedance, etc. As can be appreciated, such sensors provide the surgeonwith enhanced tactile feedback simulating actual operating conditions.The master handles may also include a variety of different actuators fordelicate tissue manipulation or treatment further enhancing thesurgeon's ability to mimic actual operating conditions.

Referring to FIG. 11 , a medical work station is shown generally as workstation 1000 and generally may include a plurality of robot arms 1002,1003; a control device 1004; and an operating console 1005 coupled withcontrol device 1004. Operating console 1005 may include a display device1006, which may be set up in particular to display three-dimensionalimages; and manual input devices 1007, 1008, by means of which a person(not shown), for example a surgeon, may be able to telemanipulate robotarms 1002, 1003 in a first operating mode.

Each of the robot arms 1002, 1003 may include a plurality of members,which are connected through joints, and an attaching device 1009, 1011,to which may be attached, for example, a surgical instrument or surgicaltool “ST” supporting an end effector 1100, in accordance with any one ofseveral embodiments disclosed herein.

Robot arms 1002, 1003 may be driven by electric drives (not shown) thatare connected to control device 1004. Control device 1004 (e.g., acomputer) may be set up to activate the drives, in particular by meansof a computer program, in such a way that robot arms 1002, 1003, theirattaching devices 1009, 1011 and thus the surgical tool (including endeffector 1100) execute a desired movement according to a movementdefined by means of manual input devices 1007, 1008. Control device 1004may also be set up in such a way that it regulates the movement of robotarms 1002, 1003 and/or of the drives.

Medical work station 1000 may be configured for use on a patient “P”lying on a patient table 1012 to be treated in a minimally invasivemanner by means of end effector 1100. Medical work station 1000 may alsoinclude more than two robot arms 1002, 1003, the additional robot armslikewise being connected to control device 1004 and beingtelemanipulatable by means of operating console 1005. A surgical tool(including an end effector 1100) may also be attached to the additionalrobot arm. Medical work station 1000 may include a database 1014, inparticular coupled to with control device 1004, in which are stored, forexample, pre-operative data from patient/living being “P” and/oranatomical atlases.

One aspect of the disclosure is directed to an endoscopic system thatsupports organ matching to preoperative images, for example, images of alung, other anatomy or anatomical features within a surgical site. Theendoscopic system can provide both visual imaging and surface mappingfor providing 3D models or 2D renderings of a 3D image (where a displayis a 2D display). The endoscopic system includes surgicalinstrumentation that can be used to generate a 3D spatial map. Theendoscopic system includes a computing device that utilizes the 3Dspatial map to provide enhanced navigational guidance.

One advantage of the disclosure is to enable 3D surfacing of organs andother anatomical features and objects in a surgical site, which can bematched to preoperative computational imaging needed for operativeguidance to target lesions with particular special knowledge of adjacentstructures and anatomic boundaries such as in sublobar resection or lungcancer as well as overlay of pre-surgical planning information such asplanned resection lines. Primary use for this system is thoracic, butthis system can be utilized, or modified for use, in connection withdeep pelvic surgery, rectal surgery, or other surgical applications.

The systems and methods described herein may be useful in varioussurgical procedures in which a patient is being diagnosed and/ortreated, e.g., in cavities (insufflated or otherwise established),luminous structures, etc. For example, in an embodiment in which aclinician is performing a diagnosis of targets in a thoracic area of apatient, the disclosed systems and methods may be employed to assistduring navigation of surgical instruments moving relative to anatomicalfeatures or targets within body. Specifically, the systems and methodsdescribed enable in vivo imaging for later display on an intra-operative3D model or a two-dimensional 3D rendering (where a 3D display is notavailable). Additionally, the disclosed systems and methods may providethe clinician with the ability to view and/or determine variouscharacteristics of anatomical features, structures, and/or othertargets, as well as the position of one or more surgical devices, tools,and/or instruments relative to the body of the patient, as well as othersurgical instrumentation disposed within or about the patient.

Persons skilled in the art will understand that the structures andmethods specifically described herein and illustrated in theaccompanying figures are non-limiting exemplary embodiments, and thatthe description, disclosure, and figures should be construed merely asexemplary of particular embodiments. It is to be understood, therefore,that the disclosure is not limited to the precise embodiments described,and that various other changes and modifications may be affected by oneskilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of thedisclosure. Additionally, it is envisioned that the elements andfeatures illustrated or described in connection with one exemplaryembodiment may be combined with the elements and features of anotherwithout departing from the scope of the disclosure, and that suchmodifications and variations are also intended to be included within thescope of the disclosure. Indeed, any combination of any of the disclosedelements and features is within the scope of the disclosure.Accordingly, the subject matter of the disclosure is not to be limitedby what has been particularly shown and described.

1. (canceled)
 2. A system for imaging within a body of a patient,comprising: a first surgical instrument; a second surgical instrument; ascanner configured to project IR light; a first IR camera coupled to thefirst surgical instrument; a second IR camera coupled to the secondsurgical instrument, wherein the first and second surgical instrumentsare separate from the scanner such that the first and second IR camerasare positioned in 3D spaced relationship with each other and the scannerprojecting the IR light; an optical light camera; and a workstationoperably coupled to the catheter and the biopsy tool, the workstationincluding a memory and a processor, the memory storing instructions,which when executed by the processor cause the processor to: generate IRlight images of IR light projected by the scanner and reflected off ofan anatomical object; capture a first IR light image with the first IRcamera at a default zoom mode; capture a second IR light image with thesecond IR camera at the default zoom mode; determine parallax betweenthe first and second IR cameras and the scanner, wherein the parallax isa distance and angle between the first and second IR cameras, a distanceand angle between the first IR camera and the scanner, and a distanceand angle between the second IR camera and the scanner; associate the IRlight images to create an integrated IR light image based upon thedetermined parallax; align an optical light image of the anatomicalobject captured with the optical light camera with the integrated IRlight image by adjusting pixels to account for the parallax between theoptical light camera and the first and second IR cameras; and associatethe integrated IR light image with the optical light image of theanatomical object to generate a real-time, intra-operative 3D image ofthe anatomical object.
 3. The system according to claim 2, furthercomprising the memory storing thereon further instructions, which whenexecuted by the processor, cause the processor to generate a 3D pointcloud when associating the IR light images.
 4. The system according toclaim 2, further comprising a third IR camera, the first, second, andthird IR cameras arrayed in the body of the patient, wherein the memorystores thereon further instructions, which when executed by theprocessor cause the processor to capture IR light with three IR cameras,each IR camera having a different field of view.
 5. The system accordingto claim 4, further comprising the memory storing thereon furtherinstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto overlap the different fields of view.
 6. The system according toclaim 2, further comprising the memory storing thereon furtherinstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto capture IR light reflected off of the anatomical object within afirst field of view associated with the first IR camera a second fieldof view associated with the second IR camera.
 7. The system according toclaim 6, further comprising the memory storing thereon furtherinstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto overlap the first and second fields of view.
 8. The system accordingto claim 2, further comprising a second scanner configured to project IRlight, wherein the memory stores thereon further instructions, whichwhen executed by the processor cause the processor to project IR lightfrom a second scanner onto the anatomical objected within the patient ata different frequency, interleaved timing, or combinations thereof, thanthat of the IR light projected by the scanner.
 9. The system accordingto claim 2, further comprising the memory storing thereon furtherinstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto update the real-time, intra-operative 3D image of the anatomicalobject in real-time as new optical light images are captured by theoptical light camera.
 10. The system according to claim 3, furthercomprising the memory storing thereon further instructions, which whenexecuted by the processor cause the processor to generate the 3D pointcloud based on the integrated IR light image.
 11. The system accordingto claim 2, further comprising the memory storing thereon furtherinstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto warp the optical light image into the integrated IR image.
 12. Asystem of imaging within a body of a patient, comprising: a scannerconfigured to project IR light; a first surgical instrument; a secondsurgical instrument, a first camera coupled to the first surgicalinstrument; a second camera coupled to the second surgical instrument,wherein the first and second surgical instruments are separate from thescanner such that the first and second IR cameras are positioned in 3Dspaced relationship with each other and the scanner; an optical lightcamera; and a workstation operably coupled to the catheter and thebiopsy tool, the workstation including a memory and a processor, thememory storing instructions, which when executed by the processor causethe processor to: generate IR light images of IR light projected by thescanner and reflected off of an anatomical object; capture a first IRlight image with the first IR camera at a default zoom mode; capture asecond IR light image with the second IR camera at the default zoommode; determine parallax between the first and second IR cameras and thescanner, wherein the parallax is a distance and angle between the firstand second IR cameras, a distance and angle between the first IR cameraand the scanner, and a distance and angle between the second IR cameraand the scanner; associate the IR light images to create an integratedIR light image based upon the determined parallax; align an opticallight image of the anatomical object captured with the optical lightcamera with the integrated IR light image by adjusting pixels to accountfor the parallax between the optical light camera and the first andsecond IR cameras; associate the integrated IR light image with theoptical light image of the anatomical object to generate a real-time,intra-operative 3D image of the anatomical object; and display thegenerated real-time, intra-operative 3D image on a display.
 13. Thesystem according to claim 12, further comprising the memory storingthereon further instructions, which when executed by the processor causethe processor to generate a 3D point cloud when associating the IR lightimages.
 14. The system according to claim 12, further comprising a thirdIR camera, the first, second, and third IR cameras arrayed in the bodyof the patient, wherein the memory stores thereon further instructions,which when executed by the processor cause the processor to capture IRlight reflected off of the anatomical object with three IR cameras, eachIR camera having a different field of view.
 15. The system according toclaim 14, further comprising the memory storing thereon furtherinstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto overlap the different fields of view.
 16. The system according toclaim 12, further comprising the memory storing thereon furtherinstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto capture IR light reflected off of the anatomical object within afirst field of view associated with the first IR camera and a secondfield of view associated with the second IR camera.
 17. A system forimaging within a body of a patient, comprising: a scanner configured toproject IR light; a first surgical instrument; a second surgicalinstrument; a first IR camera coupled to the first surgical instrument;a second IR camera coupled to the second surgical instrument, whereinthe first and second surgical instruments are separate from the scannersuch that the first and second IR cameras are positioned in 3D spacedrelationship with each other and the scanner; an optical light camera; aworkstation operably coupled to the catheter and the biopsy tool, theworkstation including a memory and a processor, the memory storinginstructions, which when executed by the processor cause the processorto: generate IR light images of IR light projected by the scanner andreflected off of an anatomical object; capture a first IR light imagewith the first IR camera at a default zoom mode; capture a second IRlight image with the second IR camera at the default zoom mode;determine parallax between the first and second IR cameras and thescanner, wherein the parallax is a distance and angle between the firstand second IR cameras, a distance and angle between the first IR cameraand the scanner, and a distance and angle between the second IR cameraand the scanner; associate the IR light images to create an integratedIR light image based upon the determined parallax; align an opticallight image of the anatomical object captured with the optical lightcamera with the integrated IR light image by adjusting pixels to accountfor the parallax between the optical light camera and the first andsecond IR cameras; and associate the integrated IR light image with theoptical light image of the anatomical object to generate a real-time,intra-operative 3D image of the anatomical object, wherein the real-timeintra-operative 3D image of the anatomical object is updated inreal-time as new optical light images are captured by the optical lightcamera.
 18. The system according to claim 17, further comprising thememory storing thereon further instructions, which when executed by theprocessor cause the processor to generate a 3D point cloud whenassociating the IR light images.
 19. The system according to claim 17,further comprising a third IR camera, the first, second, and third IRcameras arrayed in the body of the patient, wherein the memory storesthereon further instructions, which when executed by the processor causethe processor to capture IR light reflected off of the anatomical objectwith three IR cameras, each IR camera having a different field of view.20. The system according to claim 19, further comprising the memorystoring thereon further instructions, which when executed by theprocessor cause the processor to overlap the different fields of view.21. The system according to claim 17, further comprising the memorystoring thereon further instructions, which when executed by theprocessor cause the processor to capture IR light reflected off of theanatomical object within a first field of view associated with the firstIR camera and a second field of view associated with the second IRcamera.